Envelop.



No. 696,985. Patented Apr. 8, I902.

J. LUCAS.

ENVELOP.

(Application mm Nov. 21, 1901.)

(N0 Model.)

UNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JONATHAN LUCAS, OF CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA.

ENVELO P.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 696,985, dated April 8,1902. application filed November 21,1901. Serial No. 83,099. (No model.)

To (LZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JONATHAN LUCAS, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, and a resident of Charleston, South Carolina, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Envelops, of which the followingis a specification. 4

My invention relates to improvements in envelops, and more particularlyto that class of envelops for containing samples; and the object thereofis to provide a device of this character which may, if desired, beshipped through the mails, for containing samples of rice, tobacco,seed, or other articles of a similar nature and which can be readilyopened to display the contents of the envelop without any danger oflosing any of the contents thereof and which when folded and fastenedwill absolutely prevent any loss.

lVith these and other objects in view the invention consists in certainnovel features of construction and combination and arrangement of parts,as will be more fully hereinafter described and then specificallypointed out in the claims.

Referring to the drawings, wherein the same part is designated by thesame reference-numeral wherever it occ'u rs, Figure 1 is a perspectiveview of an envelop made in accordance with my invention and showing thesame open and part of its contents displayed. Fig. 2 is a centrallongitudinal section of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a central longitudinal sectionof the envelop when closed.

The envelop is preferably composed of a single sheet of strong paper,cloth, or other suitable material.

The envelop is formed of the body portion or front 1. The edges of thefront 1 are folded up and overlap and are secured together by gluing orother suitable means to form the back The end flaps 3 4 are secured tothe edge of the front and are folded upover the back portion 2 andsecurely close the ends of the envelop.

At about the central portion of the envelop a fold is made, as indicatedat 5, whereby the two halves of the envelop may be doubled upon eachother, as indicated in Fig. 3. In one-half of the envelop an opening 6is made, as most clearly shown in Fig. 1, this opening being ofconsiderable less size than the half of the envelop, so that anoverhanging flange is formed all around this opening to prevent theescape ofthe contents when the same is in the end of the envelopcontaining the opening.

Vhen samples or other material are placer in the envelop through theopening, they are permitted to pass into the closed half thereof, andwhen the two halves are folded together on the line 5 the passage fromthe closed half to that with the opening therein is entirely closed andthe material contained in the envelop is prevented from escaping.

Any suitable means may be employed to hold the envelop in its closedposition withoutdeparting from my invention; but I prefer to use themeans herein shown, which consist of a band 7, secured by gluing orother means at one end of the closed part of the envelop and under whichthe open end of the envelop is adapted to be passed. Preferably this endof the envelop is slightly narrower than the other, so as to be easilyinserted between the band and the envelop.

If desired, any additional means may be provided to secure the envelopin its closed position, or other means may be substituted for that whichI have shown.

In order to readily examine the contents of the package, the open end ofthe envelop is pulled from beneath the band 7. The operator then graspsthe package near the center, holding the edges of the envelop betweenhis thumb and finger and presses them toward each other. This serves toopen the envelop into the form of a tube, and when slightly inclined thecontents will run down into the open half of the envelop below theopening 6; but it cannot escape, owing to the overhanging walls formedaround the sides and end. When the sample has been examined, by tiltingthe envelop the other way the contents will run back into the closedportion thereof, when the envelop can be again closed.

For convenience in use any desired matter can be printed on the envelopthat may be found either necessary or desirable in the particular way inwhich it happens to be used.

Various changes may be resorted to in the general form and arrangementof the several parts described without departing from the spirit andscope of my invention, and I will ICO have it understood that I do notwish to limit myself to the precise details shown and described but myinvention covers'such changes and alterations as fairly fall within thespirit and scope of-my claims.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. An envelop having closed sides and ends, composed of two sections,one of said sections having closed sides and an open end opening intosaid other section, the other of said sections having an opening in oneof its sides,

' and an opening in its end communicating with said closed section atone end and a I folding-line between the sections whereby materialcontained in said envelop may he slid into said closed section forsafe-keeping and into said section having the openside to display thecontents of said envelop through said opening.

2. An envelop having closed sides and ends,

* foldable between its ends and having an opening in one side betweenthe center and one end thereof, whereby two sections are formed, one ofwhich is adapted to contain the contents of the envelop and into theother of which the contents are'adapted to be moved to display the same.

3. An envelop having closed' sides and ends, a folding-line between itsends and having an opening in its inner side between the fold andsection of which is adapted to display the material, when the materialis moved into that section and means for securing the two ends of theenvelop in their folded position.

5. An envelop having closed sides and ends comprising a closed sectionand a section having an opening in one side thereof, said opening beingsmaller than said section, whereby an overhanging edge is formed aroundsaid opening and a folding-line between said sections, whereby anenvelop is formed, one section of which is adapted to securely holdmaterial placed therein and the other end of which is adapted to displaywithout loss the material contained in said envelop, when the same ismoved into that section.

6. An envelop having closed sides and ends comprising a closed sectionand a section having an opening in one side thereof, said two sectionscommunicating, said opening being smaller than said section, whereby anoverhanging edge is formed around said opening, and a foldin g-linebetween the sections,whereby an envelop is formed, one section of whichis adapted to securely hold the contents thereof, and the other sectionof which is adapted to display without danger of loss the contents whenthey are moved to that section.-

7. An envelop having closed sides and ends 4 comprising a closed sectionand a section having an opening in one side thereof, said two sectionscommunicating, said opening being smaller than said section, whereby anoverhanging edge is formed'around said opening, and a folding'linebetween the sections,whereby an envelop is formed, one section of whichis adapted to securely hold the contents thereof, and the other sectionof which is adapted

